David Berkoqitz/Flickr
I try to be open minded about how people spend their money. It’s not mine, after all. But after reading a story in yesterday’s newspaper about Panasonic and Samsung to begin selling 3D TVs this week, I am so $(#*@! frustrated.
Why does anyone need to watch TV in 3D?
It costs $500 more than a comparable set. There’s almost nothing to watch in 3D right now. (Sports will be some of the first 3D programming.) And you have to wear bulky glasses that require batteries. Batteries! If you don’t have on the special glasses, everything looks fuzzy.
America, this is not what you need to be spending your money on right now. How about paying off credit card debt? Or even – gasp – contributing to your 401k?
I’ve seen movies in 3D and it’s awesome. But I’m content to experience 3D at the movie theater. Not that I am the target consumer for 3D TVs. I watch about 17 minutes of TV a week and see roughly four movies a year. But even if you are a huge TV and movie buff, is having a 3D TV really going to improve your life? Make you happy? Dissolve all your woes?
No.
Regular TV is good enough for me. Who’s with me?
Just got some interesting economic factoids from the website BillShrink.com. Are you part of the savings trend?
- 46% of credit card holders paid their bill in full each month in Feb. 2009
- 59% of credit card holders paid their bill in full each month in Feb. 2010
- The average American family had $2,000 in unexpected expenses last year
- Americans have reduced their debt by $101.2 billion in the past 14 months ($1,874 per household)
- We are currently saving at record rates, setting a 15-year high (Check out BillShrink’s super cool graphic about American’s personal savings and debt, which goes back to 1960).
- We still over pay for lots of stuff, including ATM fees, credit card late fees, and dealership auto maintenance (though I’m seeing coupons from dealers these days)
To get this data BillShrink surveyed 154,000 users on its site from February 2009-January 2010. The pay off rate has been steadily increasing each month, according to the responses below.
Yes, I pay off balance each month No, I don’t pay off balance each month
02-09 46.03% 53.97%
03-09 45.92% 54.08%
04-09 41.75% 58.25%
05-09 43.19% 56.81%
06-09 46.28% 53.72%
07-09 46.92% 53.08%
08-09 48.72% 51.28%
09-09 51.21% 48.79%
10-09 51.99% 48.01%
11-09 54.73% 45.27%
12-09 57.25% 42.75%
01-10 58.63% 41.37%
I’m curious how BargainBabe.com readers compare to the national average.
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KrissZPhotography/Flickr
This is a guest post from Margarette Burnette at CouponsAndKids.com.
We could all use a jump-start in our savings for the new decade. If you’re looking for new ways to plump up your nest egg, try these ten ideas for 2010.
1. To get winter savings, call your heating provider and ask for a lower rate. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average cost of space-heating fuels this winter is expected to decrease by about $84 . If you’re on a fixed rate heating plan—where unit rates won’t decrease at all–call your utility company and ask if it makes sense to go to a variable (or lower fixed) rate plan. Potential 2010 Savings: $84.
2. For summertime savings, call your electric company and enroll in a load management program. You could get a discount if you agree to cut your energy usage during peak periods (when air conditioners are typically going full-speed). In the mid-west, customers who opt for Duke Energy’s Power Manager Program receive a one-time credit of at least $25 just for signing up. Potential 2010 Savings: $25 or more.
3. Adopt a “round up” or “round down” spare change savings plan. Whenever you spend money, round up the total and put the difference between the actual price and the round number in your savings account. If you round up only $5 a week, that’s a 2010 savings of $260.
4. Come in under-budget at the grocery store. Every week, write out your grocery list and try to figure out how much your bill will be. Then, bring the right amount of cash for those purchases. If you come in “under budget”, deposit the difference at the bank (some supermarkets have banks or ATMs on the premises). By making $10 under budget each week, you could deposit 2010 savings of $520.
5. When shopping online, use rebate web sites. Companies such as Upromise.com give a rebate of 1% to 25% of purchases spent through their site, which can go towards a child’s college fund. If you make $4,500 in online purchases over the course of the year, and receive an average a rebate of 5%, that’s a potential 2010 savings of $225.
6. Call your car insurance company and ask for a low-mileage discount. If you commute fewer than 10,000 miles per year (for example, you work from home or recently lost your job), car insurance companies may give you a rate discount of up to ten percent. If your premium is usually $1,750 a year, that’s a potential 2010 savings of $175. (And even if you don’t have a short commute, shop around for new insurance at least once during the year. You may find a lower rate with another insurer).
7. Find a credit card with lower interest rates. Though new credit card rules don’t take effect until February, you may be able to find a lower rate today by comparing credit card companies. One free site, Billshrink.com, will let you anonymously input information about your credit card usage. It will then instantly make recommendations about which cards can save you money. If you have a $7,000 balance and can lower your interest rate by 4.5%, that’s a 2010 savings of $315.
8. Find a better cell-phone plan. Billshrink also lets you compare your cell-phone company against their competitors to find a better deal. The average person spends $63 a month for cell phone use, so if you find a plan that fits your needs for 30% less, your 2010 savings could be $225.
9. Seal your heating ducts. According to the Energy Star web site, doing so can prevent the “open window” cold air effect in the winter and save about $190, or twenty percent of the average heating bill. Potential 2010 Savings: $190
So far, you have a potential savings of more than $2,000. But don’t blow all your money before the end of the year. Instead:
10. Invest in a high yield savings account. Many online and traditional financial institutions offer FDIC-insured savings products that can help you earn more on what you save. This Bargain Babe post has information on how to find a better bank to save money. When you do that, it will be a great way to start the New Year.
Victor Bezrukov/Flickr
I went over my cell phone minutes the past two months and the overage charges bothered me so much they seeped into my sleep. Two nights ago I dreamed that I called AT&T and asked them to bump me up to a more expensive plan and forgive my overages.
And they did!
I woke up refreshed and wondering if I had actually called AT&T. Turns out the dream – and the overage forgiveness – was just that.
Drat.
I decided to call and ask if my new plan was pro-rated, giving me a few more minutes until the beginning of the month when my plan resets. While on the phone with a nice gentleman named Rham I asked if it was possible to forgive my overage charges this month, seeing how I was a loyal AT&T customer who always paid my bill on time.
“Let me see what I can do. Please hold.”
Rham came back on the line. He couldn’t immediately credit my account for the overages but put in an “adjustment request.” I would get a call early January with the adjustment amount. The last time this happened I received an adjustment (read: credit) for $1,214.65 so I expect full or partial credit this time.
“Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“Well, yes. I also went over my texting plan this month. I’d like to bump up to the next texting plan, and, if I do, is it possible to forgive my overage charges for extra texts in December?”
Rham asked me to hold.
Unlike my minutes overages, Rham was able to immediately credit me $20-some dollars for my overage texts. (At $.10 a pop they add up slowly, but apparently I texted like a teenager in December!) And he pro-rated my new texting plan so I don’t have to worry about texting the rest of the month.
“Thank you for the excellent customer service you have provided me with today,” I told Rham before hanging up.
“You’re very welcome.”
I see the call as a win-win for AT&T and myself.
AT&T keeps a longtime customer happy (so much so that I’m blabbing about it to everyone) and they make more money off me to the tune of $30 extra a month. I save money (at $.45/minute extra paying up front is the cheaper route) and I am more loyal to them because of the consideration they showed me.
Proof dreams come true!
Related: My bra dream: proof I need to spend
For existing Bank of America customers only!
B of A wants you to pay your bills online, badly. To get you to try out their online bill pay service, they are offering $35 if you sign in to online banking and pay three bills online within 30 days. If you pay two, you get $25.
I am a big fan of paying bills online, even though I don’t bank with B of A. I can quickly check my statement, make sure the charges are accurate, and pay with a click. Plus, I save $5 a year on stamps for every bill I pay online.
Caveats: only people who have not used B of A’s online bill pay in the past six months are eligible. They pay the bonus in about 90 days via direct deposit or mailed check. May not be available in Washington or Idaho.
Thanks Janean!
How would you describe your relationship with your money? I fight with mine, but he never seems to agree with me. Then I ignore him until we both simmer down. Not very healthy. I recently talked to Morgana Rae, a money coach who writes Abundance and Prosperity, about how to turn my money monster into a money honey.
What is your money philosophy?
The underpinning of what I teach is that we all have these subconscious relationships with money as if money were a person. We are human beings so we relate to everything as if it was a human being. Our dogs, our cats, our boats, our cars, our money.
The money we have is very judgmental, sort of a tease and then it leaves us high and dry. It’s as if it’s our fault. The formula for especially women is you have to work so hard for so much and you have to do all the work in the relationship and he’s going to leave you anyway.
No you can’t have this, you can’t have that. It’s like being on a diet. So money becomes this punisher or critic who stresses people out with health care bills and mortgages. If you can change money from this nasty, critical monster who keeps making you work hard for not enough and trade him in for this handsome, romantic, sexy lover who wants to stay with you, you’re going to treat money a little differently.
If you asked your money what he wants he’ll say really nice things. It’s okay to spend money if it’s worth it.
How do we know our money will answer with responsible answers, like you have suggested?
There has to be a level of personal responsibility. There has to be a reality check. There has to be some inner resonance.
What do you mean?
It has to feel true. It really hinges on it being a relationship with another human being. He (money) is not a prince who comes to rescue you. Because then you are the victim.
How can people create a healthy relationship with their money?
I would start by examining all the negative things you’ve heard or seen with money. Find the negative thoughts and turn them into a real bad ass monster that is so intolerable you just want to get rid of him. Then you imagine who would you love so much. This relationship is not based on what he can buy you but on how good a relationship partner you can be to him.
Money likes to be responded to and loved and paid attention to. When money represents all of your failures, your irresponsibility, your guilt for buying that stuff, divorces and breakups and betrayals, people go unconscious. They don’t want to see it. They don’t want to deal with it.
They are running away from their relationship. They are scared of it. The people who most need to pay attention to their money are doing it the least and it’s self fulfilling because the money gets scarier and scarier.
How should we pay attention to our money?
Look at your bank account every week. Write down everything you purchase. There is a consciousness and awareness and decision making that changes you from blithely buying the junk purchases to buying very special nice things with consciousness, awareness, and gratitude that makes you feel good about yourself.
What steps can I take to improve my relationship with my money?
1. Examine your relationship with money. Money is a stand in for everything else. Our choices, our worthiness, our freedom. What are all the things you’ve seen, heard or experienced around money?
2. Make money the bad guy. Get rid of the dynamic of unworthiness and foolishness. You make it so real that you could taste this guy. He makes your skin crawl.
3. Get rid of him.
4. Invent your money honey. You take on the role of the great relationship partner. What do you need from me so you can stay with me?
5. Ask your money what it wants. What do you think of how I am spending you? Do you want this? Do you want me to do that?
Loading ...This 2:20 minute video from SpendLessTV is pretty darn helpful if you are trying to get out of a cell phone contract. It suggests a few ways to do the deed that I’d never heard of. And it has practical advice that is easy to follow.
This is a guest post by Alex, BargainBabe.com’s intern.
The iPhone has become quite the celebrity and as a result it has alienated it’s closest, much cheaper cousin, the iPod Touch.
If you take an iPod Touch, buy a headset with a microphone, and download an application called Skype, you end up with something incredibly similar to the iPhone. But it’s a lot cheaper. You can make and take calls, and even set up an answering machine.
What’s the catch? The iPod Touch must be connected to the internet via Wifi in order to make phone calls. This isn’t always a downside. WiFi hotspots are becoming more and more common. There’s even an application that will locate Wifi hotspots near you.
Let’s do a quick cost comparison to see what the iPhone’s convenience costs compared to the iPod Touch.
Features by Comparison:
iPhone: Built-in microphone, built-in camera, AT&T phone service, access to satellite internet, Wifi optional, 8 GB hard drive, text messaging optional through AT&T, email and Safari web applications included.
iPod Touch: Headphone microphone, must use Wifi, Skype phone service, 8 GB hard drive, text messaging optional through Skype, email and Safari web applications included.
The iPhone is clearly more convenient, but to purchase one at a reasonable cost you must sign up for a 2-year AT&T contract and the monthly internet. Without signing up for a 2-year contract, a new iPhone will easily cost $400+.
On the other hand, Skype is free to try and doesn’t force you into contracts, plus they can’t nail you with overage charges. You can stop paying that $2.95 per month whenever you want and switch to a better deal if you find one. Still, with Skype you have to purchase a phone number if you want other people to be able to call you. That phone number will run you $30 per year when you purchase a year of service.
You’ll get a cheaper monthly cellular service if you share a family plan, and save even more if you limit your use of minutes. Click here for a list of AT&T plans, and here for Skype.
Maybe after all these comparisons it seems like the iPhone is not worth the money and the iTouch is not worth the hassle. I think there’s a lot of people who would agree with you, which is why I came up with a third option, buying a used and older model iPhone.
By purchasing used, you avoid getting pulled into a two-year wireless plan that comes with a new one, and by purchasing an older model (nicknamed the iPhone 2G) your wireless data plan costs $20 dollars a month instead of $30. You’re paying for a slower connection, but it’s still quite functioning when it comes to downloading email or reading the latest news on the go.
If you search eBay for iPhone 2G, you’ll see that $150 is about as cheap as the old iPhones are going for. It’s more expensive than a brand new one! There’s so many people who either don’t want to start a new 2-year contract, or they’re already in the middle of one from the “latest technology” they bought last year, that there’s a big demand for used iPhones with no contract.
Be on the lookout in the near future. Wifi networks are ever-expanding and there are a lot of rumors floating around the web on a new iTouch with a built-in microphone and camera. The iPod Touch Alternative might just become even more cost effective.
My spending moratorium is over in four days on August 1. Hallelujah!
I told Hubby how well my spending experiment was going and he brought up a great point. You’re not spending anything, he said. “But I’m more in the ‘I can spend’ mindset,” he said.
The possibility that his spending would change during my moratorium had not occurred to me. Once he pointed it out, though, I was nervous that our spending had shifted from the two of us to just him.
Was our total spending in July any less than in past months?
I pulled up our most recent credit card statement, which ended yesterday, and found our total had ballooned to levels not seen since before we started my simple budgeting system.
Uh oh.
What happened? Some of the purchases were in June, before the moratorium started, which I subtracted. Then I subtracted all the business expenses, which were allowed during the moratorium. The total came waaaay down to where it resembled bills from past months.
But Hubby was right. Our credit card bill, which reflects the vast majority of our spending, was about the same. Does this mean I didn’t save any money during the moratorium?
I took a closer look at the bill. Most of the charges were genuinely Hubby’s (a pull up bar from Big 5, a massage, lunch with co-workers) – not him covering for me.
Then I saw it.
A $395 charge from the dentist for a night guard. That expense is paid for by pre-tax dollars we set aside for medical expenses through our Health Savings Account. The money has already been saved. I subtract $395 and our total spending is…REALLY LOW!
In fact, our July spending is less than half of what our lowest credit card bill has been in years. Maybe ever.
I’ve still got four days until I can spend, but so far I’m declaring the moratorium a success!!!
SpendLessTV.com has a video on how to complain to get your money’s worth. Good tips, though I disagree with one tidbit. The expert they interview, Vera Gibbons, says at :42 “you don’t have to be polite necessarily, but you have to be reasonable.”
I think you always have to be polite, with very rare exceptions. In fact, being friendly often pays off! (Like when I used my coupons at Target.)
Watch the video here.
It feels a little bit like I’m about to start seventh grade and my Mom has stashed my new clothes and pristine new shoes into the hall closet where I can pull them out one by one and day dream about the first day of school when I can wear them. Actually, she always gave me permission to wear them ahead of time but she laced her approval with a caveat, “If you wear them now you won’t have something new to wear on the first day of school.”
Any other day of the year I was happy with hand-me-downs, but the first day of school? Even my underwear was new. I still remember in the tenth grade a friend wore dirty, black hi-top converse on the first day. That, I thought, took guts. It also made me realize that not everybody could afford to have new clothes.
But I digress. The stash that I am currently excited about is not clothes but a huge bag of toiletries. I used my coupons from TheCouponMaster.com at Target!
I redeemed 15 coupons totaling $17.25, bringing my bill to $32.74. (Incidentally, I still had to pay 9.75 percent California sales tax on the full, pre-coupon amount.) I paid $1.79 for the coupons, bringing my savings to $15.46 ($17.25 – $1.79).
Yes, I broke my moratorium. But I decided letting a wallet full of coupons go to waste – the ones I used all expire in July – was very un-Bargain Babe-like. However, as reader Tammy suggested, I am going to hide these items away until August in observance of the moratorium. This is the most sensible solution, I decided.
I would not have gotten this big of a deal without befriending the Target cashier. Most of the coupons say only one can be used per purchase. I was prepared to make separate purchases if need be. Turns out my placement in line set the stage for a score.
The person in front of me was a Target employee buying clothing with her employee discount. She started talking to the cashier about a local celebrity that had walked into the store wearing a *very* short skirt and a *very* low-cut top revealing her fake “pillow bags.” Naturally, I joined in the conversation. As soon as the celebrity left, everyone surrounded the cashier, who had rung her up, to gossip.
The cashier swiped the employee’s purchases and asked for her employee number.
“How big is the employee discount?” I asked. “Should I get a second job?”
“It’s not too bad,” the employee said.
“But they are getting more strict,” the cashier chimed in. “Now you have to show your ID card, not just the number.”
“Oh yeah?”
“My son tried to use my number – he is my designated shopper – but he didn’t have his ID card on him. I asked him how much it was. Just $30. I told him I would give him the $3.”
So the Target employee discount is 10 percent, I thought.
“Every little bit counts,” I said.
The cashier, who has a second job, agreed. She works 7 days a week but has Friday evening off, she told me.
Then she started to ring me up.
“Speaking of every little bit counts,” I said, “I have some coupons I’d like to use.”
I had set out my 15 coupons with my odd collection of deodorant, shampoo and facial cleanser.
She looked at the coupons, then she looked at me. I smiled.
“I guess I’m in one of those moods,” she said, scanning all the coupons. “But you know you’re only supposed to use one coupon per purchase (per item).”
“Thank you,” I said, swiping my credit card. “Enjoy your day off.”
A friend invited me to a happy hour Friday and I instantly said yes. Having a drink with friends is one of life’s great pleasures. Then I remembered my spending moratorium. Ug.
I could bail, but this presents exactly the type of situation that makes the moratorium a worthy experiment. The point is not to sit at home for an entire month holding my breath until August when I can spend. The point is to live my life as normally as possible while not making an discretionary purchases. That means socializing with friends.
So far I have found plenty of free activities to do with my friends, including a game of pick-up Ultimate Frisbee, a picnic on the beach, and yoga (I buy classes in bulk to get the best price so it’s already paid for).
But going to a bar is going to directly confront my non-spending initiative. Luckily, I have a plan.
1. Eat before I go so I can honestly say I’m not hungry.
2. Leave my wallet home, except for my ID. No cash = no temptation.
3. Be very engaging so nobody notices I’m sipping water.
Apparently many folks are joining me on my spending moratorium. This morning news outlets reported retail sales are worse than the dismal expectations. GAP is down 10%, JC Penney is down 8%, Target is down 6%.
A reader named Emily, who joined me on the spending moratorium, wrote in with this update:
One purchase that I did make an exception for myself is a used copy of the South Beach Diet cookbook for use at home as I am redoing phase two at present and my father, who is a diabetic, should be eating fewer carbs anyway. As I considered it a health investment, I figured the $2.00 the store was asking for made it a worthy purchase. I’m glad to see your moratorium is still happening, albeit slightly challenging.
Who else is observing the moratorium this month? Email me an update, please.
I was considering giving myself a haircut – if I botched it my pesky spending moratorium nixes a quick fix at the salon – but the challenge has been put off until August. My video producer (yes, I was going to make a video of the ordeal) is on vacation.
But it got me thinking, when is Doing-It-Yourself in the name of saving money a really awful idea? A countdown.
10. Cutting your own hair. The opportunities for disaster are as thick as my hair. Not that this is going to deter me. Hair grows back!
9. Butchering your own (wild) animal. I heard on NPR that a grown buck is worth hundreds of dollars!
8. Using bug spray with abandon. One man blew up his home this way.
7. Making your own clothes. Fixing buttons and socks, sure, but princess seams?
6. Car repair beyond the basics. Your safety is important, yo.
5. Trying a bold new hair color at home. You pay your stylist for their skills and a second opinion.
4. Electrical work. There are reasons why electrical work requires licensed professionals and permits. Reasons like fires and explosions.
3. Making your own fireworks display. This is sure to get you a Darwin award.
2. Repairing your microwave. The cost of new parts will likely cost more than buying a new one, and fixing the broken involves handling very dangerous parts.
And the No. 1 activity that is a stupid way to save money is…
1. Nipple piercing. One hapless gal from “Lower Indiana” tried this at home and concludes “I still have trouble believing how tough the skin was to pierce.” Ouch.
What’s the stupidest thing you’ve done to save money?
The coupons I purchased from TheCouponMaster.com arrived yesterday in the mail, sorted neatly with a receipt for $3.95 ($3.01 worth of coupons plus a $.94 shipping fee). But now that I’m on a spending moratorium I’m not sure if I can use them. In fact, I’m pretty sure I cannot use them.
The problem is 22 of 31 coupons I purchased expire in July. $*%&#!
My spending moratorium puts the kabash on spending money on anything but groceries, basics like rent and utilities, and business expenses.
Three of the coupons are for a legitimate grocery item (ice cream), but the others are all for toiletries, which I often buy at the grocery store on sale but they are not truly grocery items.
My plan – before the moratorium – was to use the coupons at Target, which has really good prices on toiletries. Now I’m stuck between a rock and this friggin’ moratorium, which, until now, I have had no trouble observing!
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A friend of mine got laid off just as a new report found 467,000 people got pink slips last month. That puts our national unemployment rate at 9.5 percent, a 26-year high. I talked to my friend Leah, an engineer in Los Angeles, about filing for unemployment, coping with unexpected emotions, and visiting Yosemite. Disclosure: I changed her name to protect her privacy.
What was your initial reaction when your boss told you you were getting laid off?
I sat there for a full minute, quiet, with all these things going through my head…I felt shocked and angry and betrayed and then just confused. I think I finally said “I don’t understand.”
What didn’t you understand?
I didn’t understand why because to everyone’s knowledge in the office we were safe. We had plenty of work. But I found out (in my bosses office) that a big project or two had just recently gone on hold indefinitely. Which totally messed up everything. So they had to make some changes.
Have you ever been laid off before?
No.
How are you coping, two weeks after?
Now I feel fine, comfortable. The first three days were tough. I felt sad but I felt relieved.
Why were you relieved?
In a way I had been somewhat frustrated with the way things were going at the office, personnel-wise, project-wise, and I had had some thoughts about doing something different. But no specific thoughts. I wasn’t searching for anything. The relief was now I can think about these other things in more detail.
Did you see it coming?
I remember about two or three weeks before I got laid off that 25 people in a company in San Francisco that was one of our clients got laid off. I remember being surprised, thinking “Wow I really can’t take this all for granted anymore. I don’t think it really sank in because one of those emotions that went through my head, that still does, is that I felt really foolish thinking that my history with the company and the fact that my project was strong was keeping me safe. My project still is going. It has a source of funding. I felt foolish for linking those things. I took it for granted even after telling myself that I shouldn’t.
How prepared financially were you for something like this?
I have some savings that could probably get me through a couple months so I’m not panicking yet.
Financially, have you done anything different since getting laid off?
I’ve been eating out less, drinking less, making choices that I don’t have to spend as much money. Looking back on my expenses, at least 50 percent were eating out.
Are you cutting out a few things entirely or making reductions across the board?
I will probably cut down across the board and not on anyone thing. I’ll put off big purchases that I otherwise would have gone ahead and done. For example I want a new pair of running shoes. But that’s like $100 give or take so when I got laid off, I said I can live without a new pair of running shoes.
Has your attitude about the recession changed since getting laid off?
I’m definitely more interested in unemployment benefits news and economic stimulus package news because now it actually does affect me or could affect me. I never really paid attention to that before, not for lack of interest but for lack of time.
What are you most concerned about?
To be honest I haven’t started to think very far in the future yet because I am really relived to just be able to live in the moment and relax. It’s summer and I know that I have a little bit of a cushion to take a month to just breathe.
What are you least concerned about?
I’m actually not real concerned about not ever being able to get another job because I feel the market will improve, it may just be a matter of time. I have certain knowledge and strengths and excellent referrals. My bosses have said they would be more than happy to help me out with any references. We left on very good friendly terms.
Do you still have health care?
Yes I got a severance package through the end of July and then I have to figure out COBRA.
What is your plan for the next 6 months?
I haven’t thought more than a month and a half out. I’ve got two weeks until a triathlon race and then I’m going to take about 2 weeks to travel through California, visit friends, go through Yosemite, go through Mammoth. I’ll fly back to New York, go see my parents.
Anything else you want to add?
I did file for unemployment. Haven’t heard anything back. It was easy to file online but I haven’t heard anything. It takes a while.
Read past Q&A’s:
Coupon train: clipping with strangers
Do you have an interesting recession experience you want to talk about? Email me to be considered for an upcoming Q&A.
